Shadow and the Master of Distortion
by rootedinjesus
Summary: Semi-sequel to "Sonic Adventure 2: Pokemon Crossover." He doesn't remember anything, but when a mysterious evil force begins terrorizing the world, Shadow the Hedgehog must find the Chaos Emeralds to uncover the secrets of his past and find the answers he and his friends seek. This is a Pokemon Crossover version of the game "Shadow the Hedgehog." Also contains Advanceshipping.
1. Chapter 1

**Yoho, everyone! I'm back with a semi-sequel to my first fanfiction. I say semi-sequel because I kinda skipped some games in the Sonic timeline. In any case, this time around I'm tackling a game whose reception has been less than perfect. Hopefully you'll like this version better.**

**And of course, in keeping in line with the predecessor, there's going to be Advanceshipping in here: more so than before, so if you don't like it, don't flame me for it.**

**Interesting fact: I don't own Sonic, Pokemon, or anything affiliated with said-franchises.**

**Okay, that's all. Read away!**

* * *

Chapter 1: Mysterious Sights

Not far from the metropolitan Goldenrod City was Ilex Forest: the only forest in all of Johto. Like most forests, it was really not that threatening for even a timid soul. Difficulty in navigating this small forest was minimal, so nobody had problems moving through.

Well, almost nobody.

The exception happened to be an unfortunate group of four travelers hoping to make their way to Goldenrod City. Their leader, a thick-headed young man with a mess of raven hair that was contained only by his red cap, had gotten them lost thanks to his stubbornness and refusal to consult anyone else for directions. Before they knew it, the sun was setting, sealing their fate for that night. They camped out, settling for homemade stew instead of the ramen one of them, a brunette with a green bandanna on her head, was so eager to dig into. While the stew was amazing as always, she was still irritated at the leader for getting them into this predicament. A few hours later, they settled down to go to bed.

The leader, however, didn't see sleep come to him so easily tonight. As soon as he saw everyone was asleep, he got out of bed, slipped on his black and yellow vest, and quietly made his way out to a clearing where he could see the sky. On nights like this when he couldn't sleep, the stars were his best friends, second only to his eternal companion: a small, yellow rodent-like creature with red spots on its cheeks and a tail shaped like a lightning bolt. Though he had stolen away like a ninja, the little rodent, being practically a part of him, sensed instantly that his best friend was gone and dashed off to find him, being quiet as well since he didn't want to wake anyone.

The raven-haired boy didn't notice, as his eyes were glued on the stars, and his mind was wandering to the same topic it had been wandering to at least once a day since the adventure they'd had in Saffron City. _I don't understand why I'm thinking about this so_ much he thought, trying to shake his mind free. _What does it mean? Why do I care so much? I mean, I always cared, but now I care even more. Do I care too much? I sure hope not._

"_Pika?_"

He turned to face his best friend, who was looking at him with concern. "Hey, Pikachu," he smiled weakly. "You couldn't sleep either, hm?"

"_Pika pikachu,_" Pikachu shook his head.

"I'm just thinking, that's all." He looked up, and a small frown lined his face. "Darn. No stars out tonight. Stupid clouds."

"_Pi,_" Pikachu nodded, then turned around and headed back to camp.

He watched him go, a small smile on his face. "Sleep well, buddy." Then he looked down again, fiddling with his hands. He wasn't keeping track of time, but he did this for about two minutes.

"Ash?"

He jumped at the sudden voice and looked to see the brunette coming towards him. "What are you doing out here?" she asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Just seeing if I can see any stars," Ash replied, an uneasy feeling in his stomach.

"Really?" she raised her eyebrows. "You like star-watching?"

"Only when I really can't sleep," he explained. "Too bad you can't see the stars out tonight."

She came and sat beside him and frowned. "Dang," she muttered. "I hate it when clouds get in the way of such a beautiful sight. Of course it could be worse: light pollution just kills them off."

"Yeah," Ash sighed, looking towards the sky. "Are you ready for your contest, May?"

"I think so," she smiled. "Beautifly and I should have no problem sweeping this one!"

"That's good to hear," he returned the smile.

"Sure is. Hey, are the clouds parting?"

"Huh?" They both looked up and saw the clouds slowly but surely parting for them to see the stars.

"Uh, May?" Ash started awkwardly.

"What is it, Ash?" May replied.

Ash felt his face heat up as he stuttered, "I'm sorry I got us lost."

She raised an eyebrow, then chuckled. "It's no big deal, Ash. We'll get there tomorrow, right?"

"Right," Ash blushed furiously. Thankfully, May couldn't see it because it was so dark out.

"Here come the stars," she grinned.

He grinned likewise, but their grins quickly faded as their jaws dropped and their eyes grew wide at what they saw.

"I-Is that –?!" May stuttered in disbelief.

"But...I don't understand," Ash stuttered.

In the sky, the starlight paled in comparison to the bright light that shone in the sky and looked like it was flying across with the trail that was behind it.

"The Millennium Comet!?" Ash breathed in shock.

"But how?" May whispered, equally shocked.

* * *

Far from where our four friends slept and star-watched, to the north of Goldenrod City, a lone figure stood the next morning as the sun shone in the East. His short, black and red arms were crossed over the white hair on his black chest. His black and red legs were set so that his white and red hover-shoes were directly under his shoulders. A perpetual frown lined his muzzle and crimson eyes.

He watched as the city came to life, all the humans buzzing around excitedly for the day's activities. They all wore smiles on their faces.

_Shadow._

He sighed somberly. _Why does that name haunt me? It's the only thing I can remember...and that gruesome image!_

He squeezed his eyes painfully as he witnessed the same scene that plagued him in his nightmares flash through his mind again, unsure what it meant. Only one word was uttered at the end of this scene:

_MARIA!_

His eyes shot open, confused and angry, but he didn't know why. "Who am I?" he wondered aloud. "And why can't I remember anything? And this...Maria...who is she?"

He stood there a few minutes more, just watching everything going on around him. After a while, he decided that standing around wasn't getting him any answers, so he decided on doing something. Before he could do anything, however, he noticed a shadow cast over him. Curious, he looked to the sky and saw a massive battleship moving towards Goldenrod City. He watched the people continue their business as though nothing were happening.

He raised an eyebrow, puzzled. "What are they doing? Don't they see the ship?" He grunted and turned away. "Bah, what do I care? They have no answers for me."

_Shadow._

There it was again: the name that haunted him, yet gave him a sense of identity. He shrugged it off, not willing to put up with a headache.

_SHADOW._

He stopped. That wasn't his head. He turned around and saw a small device float towards him. A hologram appeared out of this device, revealing an ominous figure with a horned helmet and a billowing cape. Clawed hands and feet adorned his figure.

"Can you see it, Shadow?" He looked up at the ship again. "Yes...yes, you can. Then you know well that the day of reckoning is approaching. Find the seven Chaos Emeralds, and bring them to me as promised."

"Wait," he snapped out of his trance, "who are you?! And how do you know I'm Shadow?" The figure didn't respond. The hologram disappeared, and the device exploded in his face. "How did he know me? Wait a minute," he lit up, an idea forming in his head, "if he knows my name, then he must know who I am." He stopped himself as quickly as he started. "But could it be a trick? No. It doesn't matter. I've got to believe him." He looked up, another idea forming. "Either way, though, those Chaos Emeralds...could they be the answer?" His heart leapt. "That's it! That's where the answers are." He clenched his fist, new purpose shining in his eyes. "The only way I'm going to unlock the secrets of my past is if I get those Chaos Emeralds."

With that, Shadow the Hedgehog dashed towards the city as the battleship loomed over it, apparently invisible to everyone but the black hedgehog.

* * *

**That's right! The Millennium Comet is back! Heheh...only yesterday I got to see the sixth Pokemon movie for the first time. Funny, huh?**

**Oh, never mind. Feel free to rate and review.**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Goldenrod in Flames

"Millennium Comet?" Max, May's little brother, exclaimed in astonishment. "What's it doing in the sky after only five years?"

"That is strange," Brock, the eldest, stroked his chin. "Maybe the calculations were off."

"It seems so strange...and yet so wonderful all at the same time," May couldn't help but let a smile break out on her face as she pulled out a small charm with seven tabs, six of which were folded down. "I never did get to make that wish of mine."

"Boy, did you get a lucky break," Max joked. "I wish I could be as lucky. I'd love to see Jirachi again."

"Well, his crystal's way too far from here...all the way in Hoenn. It would take a week to get there," Brock sighed. "By then, the comet would probably be gone."

"Yeah," Max shrugged. "Well, you can't have it all."

"Let's get to Goldenrod as fast as we can. That way, we can get a really good view."

"Yeah!" May cheered.

"What do you say, Ash?" Max asked.

Ash, who had been deep in thought this whole time, perked when he heard his name mentioned. "Huh? Oh, yeah, let's go!"

With that, they set out. This time around, Ash made the smart choice and let Brock lead the way out, since he seemed to remember this place better. In no time at all, they were out. After another thirty minutes of walking, they reached the city and gratefully walked into the Pokemon Center, sitting down in relaxation.

"Boy, am I an idiot," Ash sighed. "If I had listened yesterday, we would've been here for breakfast."

"Yeah," Max smirked. "Instead, we had to put up with May's evil breakfast sandwiches of death."

"Aw, come on!" May groaned. "Was it really that bad?! I did everything Brock told me to do! How could I go wrong?"

Brock shrugged. "I guess some people just don't have the touch."

"What kind of touch?!" May growled. "How hard can it be to cook a stupid sandwich?!"

As the three of them talked on, Ash stared out the window uneasily. He watched people go about their daily lives without a care. The sun had risen considerably and was now high in the sky, though it was still morning. There was nothing to be uneasy about, but the raven-haired Pokemon trainer couldn't shake the feeling of dread that had nestled itself in his stomach. It was different from what he'd felt last night: that had just been his being a dork like always, he supposed. This, however, had a more frightening feel to it, as though something terrible was about to happen. Fearful, he stepped outside, hoping the fresh air would help.

As it was, the fresh air did little to calm his nerves. While his ears didn't have to put up with the bickering inside, there was still something amiss, or so his gut told him. _But what?_

He looked to the sky, thinking the shining sun might calm him, but what he saw instead was a distortion of the whole sky as far as he could see. His eyebrow twitched. _Am I hallucinating?_ He started. _Okay, I know May's not the best cook in the world, but does her food really do that to you?! Hm...maybe I should tell Brock. Nah. If this persists, I'll tell him._

"Ash?"

He didn't hear the voice calling him, as he was too busy staring up at the sky.

"Ash!"

Still no response.

"Ash!"

That got his attention. "Huh? Who –?"

"You look like you just saw a rainbow fly overhead. I guess I should ask what's up, huh?"

He turned and saw the voice's owner walking towards him: a blue hedgehog with red sneakers on. "Sonic? Hey, what are you doing here?"

"I was just in the neighborhood," Sonic smiled, giving him a thumbs-up.

"Running from Amy again?"

"How'd you guess?" he chuckled.

"Well, there's no sign of Eggman," Ash smirked, "or any trouble for that matter. There's only one other activity you fill your time with."

"You're smarter than I thought!" Sonic jeered. "I guess I'll have to be careful what I tell you from now on so I don't give away any secrets!"

"Secrets?"

"Just kidding. Anyways, what brings you here?"

"May's got a contest coming up," Ash explained, pointing at an electronic billboard. "See?"

"Contest, huh?" Sonic chuckled. "Doesn't sound like my style, but you can tell her that I wish her luck."

"Right," Ash smiled, then chuckled.

"What's so funny?"

"I was just thinking how hilarious it would be if _you_ entered a contest as a Pokemon. You'd mop the floor with the rest of the competition."

"Maybe," Sonic shrugged. "But hey, that's not really style. I'll just hang around."

"You do that," Ash smiled, looking at the billboard again. He was really looking forward to seeing May on the stage again.

Suddenly, the billboard zapped out. Ash's eyes widened. "What? What happened?"

"Huh," Sonic muttered. "Looks like a short circuit." In a matter of seconds, however, the townsfolk were buzzing around in confusion. They'd lost power, too.

"Looks more like a small blackout," Ash noted. He turned towards the Pokemon Center and saw his friends coming to him, May holding Pikachu. "Hey guys, what's –?"

"The power's out," Max told him. "All the power in the city, just gone in the blink of an eye."

"What happened?" Sonic asked.

"We don't know," Brock admitted. "Even the reserve power's down."

"Great, just great," Ash groaned. "Hopefully things get back to normal soon."

That was when they heard a sharp scream from the center of town. In a matter of seconds, people were running, seemingly in panic, as strange, armored soldiers pursued them, weapons in hand.

"What?!" Sonic exclaimed. "What is this?"

"Well, they don't look friendly!" Ash noted. "Come on, Pikachu! Let's get 'em!"

"_Pika!_" the electric-type leapt out of May's arms and onto his best friend's shoulder, cheeks sparking.

He looked at the others. "You're not helping?"

"With the power down, our Pokemon are stuck in their Pokeballs," Brock informed him.

Ash cursed mentally. "Looks like it's up to us, then."

"Okay; let's get rolling!" Sonic cheered.

* * *

By the time Shadow had dashed into the city, the battleship had dropped several robot-looking soldiers into the middle of the city. They were destroying anything and everything in sight. Shadow dashed up a tall building and surveyed the damage, astounded but not fazed in the slightest.

"Day of reckoning, huh?" he mused to himself regarding the mysterious words of the figure that had appeared to him out of nowhere. "Hmph. All I reckon is that these people are weak if they can't stand up to these black soldiers. But if he's down there, I'd better go find him." With that, he dove headfirst into the fray.

* * *

"No sign of trouble, that's what you said!" Sonic jeered.

"Less talking, more butt-kicking!" Ash shot back.

They were doing relatively well against the black monsters, managing to hold them back long enough for several people to escape. May, Max, and Brock were standing at a distance, but not together. They'd split so they could help more people escape the wrath of the mysterious soldiers.

"Go! Hurry!" May told an elderly man as she pushed him into an armored vehicle that was evacuating. As she turned around, she noticed a light surround her. She looked up, and her irises disappeared in terror as she watched a laser fire down from above, set to slam right into her. She squeezed her eyes shut and held herself tight, bracing herself for a world of pain.

What she got instead was a force slamming into her and knocking her out of the way, skidding across the ground. The laser slammed into the ground, killing nobody, but seriously damaging the streets. May opened her eyes, still petrified.

"You okay?"

It was Ash. "Y-Yes," she replied, shaking from the adrenaline and the feeling of his arm around her.

"That was way too close."

"Uh, Ash?"

"Hm?"

"Er...could you let go of my...uh…" Not wanting to say it, she pointed at her right breast.

Ash glanced down and leapt back in panic. "Whoa! Sorry!"

"Oh, don't worry about it," she chuckled. "Things could be worse."

Ash nodded, suddenly serious again. "You're right. I think you and Max should get out of here."

May was stunned. "What? Why?"

"Uh," Ash started, still confused at his own feelings, "I just don't want you to get hurt. Sonic, Brock, and I will hold them down."

May was confused. "But Brock doesn't have any Pokemon with him."

"Er...well, someone has to stay to help evacuation."

May wasn't buying it, but she knew that now was no time to be questioning. There was a very real and imminent threat at hand. It was imperative that lives be protected. If that meant she and Max would flee the city, she would do it.

"All right," she nodded uncertainly. "Come on, Max. Let's hurry." They started dashing away, but they doubled back when they nearly got caught by a laser from the sky. Then they dashed out, and May was forced to wonder just where those lasers were coming from.

* * *

Shadow looked around, hoping to find the creature that had accosted him so, but there was no sign of him anywhere. "Come on, you miserable...where are you?"

Suddenly, a sharp pain seared through his left shoulder. He growled and turned around, shouting, "Who the hell did that?!"

"Stay down, black creature!" the man snapped. "I won't tell you twice."

"You idiot," he growled, and he kicked him in the face, knocking the gun out of his hand. Smirking, he picked it up. "Thanks for the help." With that, he turned around and dashed through the city at a mediocre pace, still not finding who he was looking for.

"Hey! Stop that black hedgehog!" some other men shouted. They shot at him, hitting him directly. He wasn't even fazed. He just glared at them, hatred filling his eyes, and shot them all down. He snatched their guns, emptied them of ammo, and refilled his gun.

"There you are, Shadow." Shadow turned towards the voice. It was a floating screen with the image of his companion on it. "I've been looking all over for you."

"I've been looking all over for you!" Shadow snapped back.

"Very well. As I cannot enter the fight directly, this screen shall serve as a means of communication between you and me. You must destroy all the humans in this city who dare to resist us."

Shadow just grunted and turned away, continuing to dash through the city as he pleased, but then something caught his eye.

"That's a...Chaos Emerald." He picked it up and held it in his hand. "Yes...the ultimate power." He moved on. There were still six more to find.

* * *

"We can't keep this up forever," Ash groaned. He was getting tired.

"Most of the people have been evacuated," Brock assured him. "We only have to go a little longer."

"I sure hope that means what it's supposed to mean," Sonic called, slamming into more and more creatures. Pikachu was using his Thunderbolt attack to overload them, but he didn't have much stamina left.

Five minutes later, Brock rushed up to them. "Everyone's out and safe. That just leaves us."

"Right," Ash nodded. "Sonic, you'd better run and find the others. They'll want to know about this."

"And leave you guys here?" Sonic raised an eyebrow.

"We'll be fine," he smiled his trademark smile. "You go find them."

"Okay," he gave a thumbs-up and dashed out.

"All right," Ash nodded to Brock.

"Let's get out of here," Brock agreed.

They turned and dashed, but they stopped, stunned by what they saw: a black hedgehog with a Chaos Emerald in his hands.

"Shadow?" Ash muttered. While he knew Shadow had survived his fall to earth, he was still caught off-guard by his sudden presence.

"Get outta my way," Shadow snapped.

"What?" Brock stammered. "What do you mean?"

"What are you doing here?" Ash asked innocently.

Shadow just growled and, leaping up, slammed them both over the head one by one. They slumped to the ground, unconscious.

"Very impressive, Shadow," the voice of his companion came. "I had actually hoped to find these two later on, but you took them out for me."

"Yeah, right," Shadow snorted. "They were just being a nuisance."

"You have no idea."

Shadow suddenly glared at him. "Who are you? How do you know who I am?"

The figure on the screen just chuckled. "All will be clear in time."

Shadow grabbed the screen forcefully. "Don't give me that bull crap. Tell me, now!"

The figure growled, and the machine squirmed out of his grasp. "Your impatience will be your undoing, Shadow. Don't get yourself in trouble. Let this be a lesson to you!"

A sudden bright flash blinded the black hedgehog, and then everything went black for him. They'd disappeared from the city, leaving the unconscious bodies of Ash and Brock in the middle of the abandoned street.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Two Sides

Shadow opened his eyes groggily. His body was sprawled out facedown on stone. He groaned as he got up, pain racking his joints.

"Ouch," he muttered. "That didn't feel good. Hm...I guess I underestimated his powers." He looked around, confused. "But now where am I? I don't remember this place." Unsure but resolute, he dashed away, hoping to find a Chaos Emerald. He'd already found one, but that was little comfort, as he still remembered nothing.

"Shadow."

He stopped suddenly. That was the voice of his mysterious companion!

"Are you awake, Shadow?"

Shadow nodded at the mysterious figure on the screen. "Yes. Yes, I am."

"Good," the figure chuckled. "You may call me the Distortion Master."

Shadow raised an eyebrow. "Distortion Master?" He didn't recognize the name.

"Yes. Now, I must ask a favor of you: inside this temple, there are five jewels that lay dormant. Find them and use your touch to revive them once again."

"Understood," he nodded. Though he remained unsure of the Distortion Master, he still felt obliged to trust him. Only the acquisition of the other Chaos Emeralds would determine whether or not this stranger was to be trusted.

As he dashed through, he ran into some trouble with some humans. They were all dressed in black, big red "R's" plastered onto their torsos. They attacked him, thinking him an enemy, but he blazed through, occasionally throwing them off a cliff.

It only took thirty minutes for Shadow to complete his task, though the obstacles he was forced to overcome made it all the less bearable.

"There," he sighed. "Hm...what do these jewels do, anyway?"

"Do not worry, Shadow," the Distortion Master assured him. "In a matter of days, you will see just what your actions here today have accomplished. Can your patience hold out until then?"

He nodded. "A few days is nothing."

"Very well," the master smirked, the monitor turning away. "I have matters I must see to on my own, now. Keep yourself busy, and be here in two days' time."

"Got it," Shadow nodded, and he turned away as well. Seeing he had no obligations on hand at the moment, he decided to use his emerald to warp to where he could find one of its sisters.

Where he landed was an industrial plant that smelled unpleasant, though not unbearably so. It was largely abandoned, save for a few people. He raised an eyebrow, somewhat disappointed.

"Is there a Chaos Emerald here?" he wondered aloud. Instinctively, however, he knew the Chaos Emerald wouldn't let him down. If he wanted to find another one, it would gladly lead him to it. "Then I guess I'll have to find it." He dashed through the place, fighting humans and the Distortion Master's soldiers as he did so. As he moved, he suddenly faltered as he realized something. "This place...I...I know it. I've been here before." Unfortunately, it was still a blur to him, and he continued on his way, ignoring the pangs in his heart that demanded to know how he knew this place. "Stay still, heart. I will find the truth."

It didn't take long for him to locate the emerald. With a satisfied grunt, he stashed it away and left the island.

* * *

He stood on the balcony, watching the sun set in the sky so that it painted the sky the same color as his suit. A frown lined his face, a grim aura in his eye. He knew full well what was going on at the present moment, but he was worried for both his allies and his enemies. While they all knew that they had to defeat these mysterious soldiers, there was no guarantee that they would unite to get the job done. If they couldn't unite, there would be no hope. The world would be lost.

"Boss? Boss Giovanniiiiiiii!"

He grunted irritably and turned around. "What do you three idiots want now?"

"We came to inform you of our latest capture!" a young man with shoulder-length lavender hair smiled, presenting him with a small, blue, metal Pokemon with a single red eye: a Beldum.

Giovanni was not pleased. "The Millennium Comet returns unexpectedly," he started low, his voice slowly rising, "a mysterious force unlike anything the world has ever seen, led by a monster called the Distortion Master, attacks us without warning, the world is at stake, and you have the audacity to continue on as if nothing is happening?!" He was practically shouting, now. The trio was intimidated.

"But...we worked so hard to get this for you…" the smallest of the trio, a talking Meowth, stammered.

"I DON'T CARE!" Giovanni roared. "Until such time as the world assures us it's not going anywhere, we will live as though it will end tomorrow. All standard Team Rocket operations are on hold as of now. Do not bring me anymore Pokemon until this matter is resolved, understand?! I don't care if it's rare, or mythical...hell, I don't even care if it's a Rayquaza! You three morons focus all your energies on taking down the invaders. If you dare continue trying to steal Pokemon, I will discharge you for good! Understand?!"

"Yes, Boss! Of course, Boss!" they shouted in unison, dashing out of the room. Giovanni pressed a button that caused the door behind them to slam shut, furthering the screams he heard.

He then turned towards the Beldum, his face once again somber. He lifted the cage and noticed that, in their negligence, those three idiots knocked down a picture frame of his. He lifted it up and saw two familiar faces in it: one of them, an excited boy with raven hair and a red cap on his head, was doing a fist pump. The other was a Pikachu, perched on his shoulder, equally happy.

He sighed. "You two have been a thorn in my side for a long time. I've been wanting to see just how strong you are. After all, you've defeated Jessie, James, and Meowth more times than you probably care to count. Why, you've probably given them more reason to leave Team Rocket than to stick with us. Why they still stick around, I do not know."

He turned towards the balcony once again. "But it makes no matter: not now, anyway. There's no time to stand around, arguing over our differences. This force is unlike anything the world has ever seen. If we cannot unite to defeat it, we will perish under it." He opened the cage and handed the Beldum a note, showing him the picture he was looking at. "Find this boy, and give him this note. If anyone can stop this madness, he can."

Beldum, touched by his rare act of kindness, flew off. He watched it go, slightly disappointed that such a rare Pokemon couldn't stay with him, but he shook it off as he glanced up at the darkening sky. The sun had set now, so that an unusual light shone dimly in the sky, growing progressively brighter as the sky darkened.

"But what of the Millennium Comet?" he mused. "Are they connected to its sudden reappearance in the sky? Hm...if we don't find answers soon, our questions will be pointless."

* * *

Twenty-four hours later, another villain with much less patience than Team Rocket's leader was staring angrily at a screen that was discussing the mysterious army that appeared out of nowhere, calling them aliens. He tapped his foot impatiently as he observed Goldenrod City's destruction.

"Those idiots," he grumbled. "They're destroying everything!" He clenched a joystick on the control panel in front of him. "Don't they know how to start an empire? Destruction is not the answer! How would I be able to build my empire in the city if there IS no city?!"

Angrily, he slammed his fist onto the control panel, shutting the screen off. "That does it. My patience has run out. I have no choice now but to act." He whipped out a walkie-talkie.

"Yes?" came the voice.

"We're out of options," he barked. "There's no more time. I'm ordering a full-scale attack on these monsters."

"Would you like that with fries?" came the voice.

"NO, YOU IDIOT!" he shouted. "Now's no time for jokes! Inform the others and have them ready by morning, understood?!" He didn't wait for an answer, as he slammed the walkie-talkie into the ground and stomped on it, effectively destroying it. Breathing hard, he calmed down a little and smiled.

"It's been a long time...but tomorrow morning, the Eggman fleet will ride again!"

* * *

He opened his eyes slowly, still dazed by the blow he'd received on the head. He looked around him and saw nothing but black and red everywhere: the colors of destruction in this case. Getting on his feet, he dusted himself off, clenching his arms suddenly as he felt them scream at him.

"Great, just great," he grumbled. "I hit my funny bone: both of them! Just my luck."

"Ash!"

He turned and saw a young but familiar face running towards him. "Max? What's going on?"

"I came to find you. Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," Ash shrugged, looking around for something. "But I don't see Brock anywhere. Huh."

"He got away," Max assured him. "He tried to wake you up, but you didn't."

"How long was I here?"

"A whole day."

"What?!" Ash cried incredulously. "I don't understand! How could someone get knocked out for a whole day?"

"We can get answers to these questions later," Max reminded him. "Come on. Let's go find May."

_May_. That rung a bell in his head...and his heart. Without another thought, he followed Max out of the city.

* * *

**I wasn't exactly sure how this chapter would turn out. Getting nitty-gritty details down is something I have trouble with. How did I do? Feel free to rate and review.**

**Hey, that rhymed! Heheh...I'm a poet, and I didn't even know it!**

**Shucks, that's an old joke. Whatever. See you in the next chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4

**All right, now things _really_ get interesting! I took off on this chapter (no pun intended) because the concept is so epic. I sure hope you like it!**

**Also, there's some serious Advanceshipping in this chapter; just a heads-up.**

* * *

Chapter 4: Sky-High Love

When dawn broke the next day, Shadow made sure he was right where he should be: in the temple with the jewels he had activated two days earlier. He looked around, hoping to find the Distortion Master, but his search came up empty for a while.

"You came, just as I told you."

He jumped at the voice. Though he had heard it before, it hadn't sounded this authentic. Turning around, he beheld the Distortion Master in person for the first time. His head was black, and two long horns with red tips sprang out of its sides. His face donned three, blood-red eyes arranged in a triangle sequence. His hands were massive claws that were disproportionate to his arms, and his body was covered in black armor. A crimson cape billowed behind him.

"The Master of Distortion," Shadow mused.

"What? Does something trouble you, Shadow?" he asked, his dark voice echoing. Shadow cringed. Something was off about this voice; something about it just sounded...unauthentic.

"N-no," he stammered, getting a hold of himself. "I was just surprised to see you here in person."

The Distortion Master chuckled. "You have much to discover. But that can wait." He strode forward and raised his clawed hand. "Now, by the power of the forces of the darkness vested in me, I command you: RISE!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a sudden tremor ran through the whole temple, causing Shadow to jump up in order to avoid injury. The tremor lasted but a second, but the effects became apparent soon enough. As he regained his bearings, he noticed everything around him falling away, leaving the temple alone and deserted.

"What's happening?" he asked, puzzled.

"See for yourself," the Distortion Master gestured towards the edge of the platform they stood on.

Shadow walked over there, took a look down, and gasped. The ground was hundreds of feet beneath them, almost thousands, and it was still fading away. He looked to the sky and saw that the clouds were getting ever closer.

"Impossible," he breathed in amazement.

* * *

"Hm?" Ash opened an eye and sat up, rubbing the sleepiness away from his eyes. "What was that?" He glanced at May and Max, still asleep, and got up to investigate the source of the sudden but small tremor in the ground. Throwing on his clothes, he strode out of Ilex Forest and into the clearing, looking around for something that might have caused it.

"Odd," he mused. "Where did it come from?"

After another moment, he noticed something else strange: a shadow slowly covering the ground. Intrigued, he looked to the sky and gasped. A massive plot of land was hovering in the sky and ascending!

"Holy shoot!" he shouted in amazement. "What is that?!"

After another moment, May dashed out. "What is it?" she asked, then she gasped, too. "Oh my…"

"It's incredible," Ash breathed. "But how did it happen?"

May stared at it, forgetting everything else as she was enamored with the flying plot of land. "It...it's so beautiful."

"Amazing," Ash agreed. "I've seen so many strange things on my journey, I've almost grown to expect them. But this...this is beyond anything I could have imagined."

"It's like a flying castle," May sighed dreamily.

"Yeah, no – ack! May, what are you doing?!"

"Huh? Oh!" She had subconsciously laid her head on his shoulder, jolting him and snapping both of them out of their stupor. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

"No trouble," he shrugged. "Man, that is cool! What do you say we get a closer look?"

"That'd be great!" May smiled.

"All right! Go get the rest of your stuff, and you and me will head up there."

May raised an eyebrow. "But...how will we get up there?"

Ash just winked at her. Shrugging, she went back to the camp, where she found Max still sleeping. She let out her Blaziken and told her to keep watch over Max while she was gone, and if anything happened while she was gone, she'd left the rest of her Pokeballs there. Then she came back to Ash and saw him standing alone, still staring up at the magnificent sight.

"So, what's the plan?" she asked.

"Just give me a few minutes," Ash smiled at her.

She shrugged and sat down, picking at the grass and thinking about the events that had transpired in a matter of only five years. When Ash came into her life and took it on himself to teach her the ropes of being a Pokemon trainer, it was like a prayer gone unanswered for nine years finally bearing fruit. He'd been the man she needed in her life when her father, who was far too busy with his gym, clocked out of her life at the age of three when Max was born. Through their adventures together, she had developed a very strong friendship with him. They encountered so many things together: befriending the mythical Pokemon Jirachi, saving Larousse City from Deoxys and Rayquaza, and so many others she could barely number them.

_Manaphy_. That name of the small, blue Pokemon known as the Prince of the Sea struck a chord in her heart. She thought of how he thought of her as her mother, of how he was such a beautiful creature, and how it pained them both to separate. She thought of the Great Temple and how she and Ash were able to save it from destruction. She remembered him flying out of the water in a brilliant ray of light as he pursued Dr. Eggman to save Manaphy.

After that adventure, she began to see Ash in a different way. She recognized more than ever his kindness, his leadership qualities, his support for anyone who felt down...in a nutshell, she recognized his masculinity. But more than any of those, she recognized his love: his love for his Pokemon, his love for his friends, his love for adventure...even his love for his enemies in times of trouble. She found herself relying on him in times of trouble, seeking his protection, and always desiring to share an adventure with him.

As she picked at the ground, her subconscious smile slowly faded as she realized what she had done: she had fallen in love with Ash.

_What was I thinking?_ she thought. _Ash may be more mature now, and he doesn't seem to mind as much when I hug him; shucks, he hugs me back! But he still doesn't understand love. Well, okay, he understands it, but he can't put a name to it. What am I supposed to do? Tell him? No, that's not a good idea. My mother always told me that the guy would have to make the first move._ She sighed sadly. _That'll probably never happen with Ash._

"May?"

She jumped on hearing his voice, as she had been so lost in thought she'd tuned out the world around her. "Huh?"

"Oh, sorry," Ash shrugged. "I didn't mean to startle you. You just looked like something bothered you. Is everything all right?"

She nodded, the words slowly falling out of her mouth. "Yes. I'm...fine." She was being honest.

"Are you sure? If something's wrong –"

"Ash, really, I'm fine," she stood up. "I was just thinking about Manaphy."

"Oh," Ash nodded somberly. "That makes sense." She smiled at him. "Listen, May…" he put his hands on her shoulders.

"Huh?" she was surprised at his affectionate gesture.

"What I was saying is, if something's ever wrong, you don't have to be afraid to tell me. I'll always be here for you, no matter what."

May was taken aback. She wasn't sure why Ash was being this way right now, but it didn't matter too much to her. She was just glad to have a wonderful friend by her side.

"Thank you, Ash," she whispered, and she wrapped her arms around him in a warm embrace. He quickly returned the favor, holding her as close to himself as possible. He could feel her breasts pressed against his chest, and the feeling of her closeness sent waves of pleasure through his body. He didn't understand why he felt this when she was so close, and he didn't want to use her solely for the purpose of getting that feeling. He was worried he would fall into that habit, and the thought made him sick.

They eased out of the embrace and looked at each other, smiling. "Well?" May asked.

A deep sound reverberated through the sky. They looked up and saw the silhouette of a Pokemon in the sky. May's eyes widened. "Is that –?"

"That's right," Ash smiled as the Pokemon came into view. "It's Charizard."

The orange, dragon-like Pokemon landed in front of them and gave Ash his usual greeting: a jet of flames.

"But...how did you call him here?" May asked, confused.

"With this," Ash pulled out a small trinket that looked like a whistle merged with a flute. "All I have to do is play the right tune, and Charizard responds like a snap."

"Wow," she smiled. "Where did you get it?"

"Actually, I made it."

May was stunned. "Really? That's...incredible, Ash! I didn't know you could do that!"

Ash put a hand behind his head. "Neither did I." They chuckled, then he handed it to her. "Why don't you hold onto it for a while? It could come in handy."

"Oh. Okay," she shrugged, taking it. Ash wasn't sure why he just did that. He didn't expect her to need Charizard when she was on her own. He mentally sighed: it was bad enough that he had trouble understanding girls, and now he didn't understand himself.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" he offered his hand to her. "Let's go check out that floating thing!"

"Let's do it!" she mirrored his excitement. They mounted Charizard, Ash in front and May in back. She put her hands around his waist, causing him to blush, and they shot into the sky.

* * *

"I don't believe this," Shadow almost whispered. "This thing...can fly? But how?"

"Do you still not realize, Shadow?" the Distortion Master chuckled. "Those jewels you activated are what allow this fortress to fly."

"Fortress?" Shadow looked at him, still in shock.

"Yes. This was once a fortress for an ancient criminal organization. It has long since been abandoned. Now, it shall serve my purposes." Shadow watched as the fortress floated forwards, while another massive battleship floated towards them. "Do they really think this piece of crap will stop us?" the Distortion Master sneered. "They underestimate our power."

Shadow raised an eyebrow as he recognized the emblem on the battleship. "Isn't that...the doctor?"

"Who cares?" his companion sneered. "He will fall before us one way or another." They watched as several black jets soared in from the sides, red "R's" plastered onto them. "What's this?"

"Team Rocket," Shadow mused. Though he remembered the name, he didn't remember anything else, much less the pure hatred that soared into his heart at the thought of them.

"It seems we have more visitors," the Master chuckled. "We really must show them our superb guest service."

Shadow wasted no more time and dashed forward. If the doctor was here, he could probably get something from him of all people. One way or another, he would make this flight profit his quest. The Master didn't object to his leaving. As he dashed along, he saw the sky fly past him, though it hardly looked any different no matter how fast he went. Something about it was mesmerizing to him.

"This sky," he mused to himself, "looking at it from so close...have I seen it before? It seems familiar…"

* * *

"Fire now!"

* * *

The black jets began firing at anything on the fortress, destroying large hunks of it at a time, though that hardly fazed the fortress's path. It was so massive, it would either take a million missiles or five strategic missiles to bring it down. Shadow was caught in one of the explosions and fell back.

"Dammit, you!" he shouted, lifting a boulder with his bare hands and hurling it at the jet. It went up in flames and plummeted. "Nice knowing you," he snarled, continuing on.

He saw another one lock onto him and fire. Thinking quickly, he used Chaos Control so that he landed on the jet that fired at him. The missile came screaming back at him, and he teleported at the last second. The missile hit the jet dead-on, blowing it to smithereens. Shadow watched from afar without a care, and continued onwards.

* * *

"Holy cow," Ash breathed in amazement. "This really _is_ incredible!"

"It's like a floating fortress!" May gasped. "That's amazing."

* * *

"Hold it, Brown Leader," came one of the Rocket pilots. "We've got a Charizard coming from above us."

"Shoot it down."

* * *

"This would be an incredible ride," Ash smiled. "Can you imagine this in a theme park?"

May giggled and leaned her head against his back. "You are so immature, it's almost cute."

"Huh?"

"Oh, nothing," she smiled, still leaning on his back. "Just...don't ever change, Ash."

"Of...course not," Ash replied. She could tell he was flustered. "Why would I change?"

"No reason," she giggled, holding him tighter. Everything was perfect.

A sudden lurch shook her out of her daydreamy state as Charizard roared in pain. "Whoa! What was that?!"

"Charizard!" Ash called. "Is everything okay? What happened?!"

Charizard didn't answer, as he was concentrating on heading towards the fortress to land as soon as possible. He skidded along the dirt painfully. When he stopped, Ash and May quickly dismounted and discovered what happened: his wing had been shot out.

"Oh no," Ash breathed.

"What?" May asked.

"With his wing shot out, he can't fly!"

"Then what are we going to do?"

"We'll have to stay up here until it heals. I'll get to work on it right away."

"How long will that take?"

"If all goes well, a half-hour. Hang tight, May."

"Okay," she nodded nervously as Ash started to work on his injured Pokemon's wing.

* * *

The Distortion Master's eyes shot open. He felt a familiar, detestable presence on his fortress as he observed the doctor's and Team Rocket's forces attack. He didn't expect them to have any success, but this presence…

"It can't be," he growled. "No. Not you again."

* * *

**Well, what did you think? Feel free to rate and review, and stay tuned for the next part of this adventure!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Oh, boy. Well, here's the next chapter. I had a hard time writing this; curse you, writer's block! Hopefully, it turned out all right for you.**

* * *

Chapter 5: Fortress Fiasco

"Brown Leader: we've spotted a black hedgehog on the fortress. We think it's that hedgehog that was contained at New Island before it went under."

"If you see him again, blast him."

"Yes, sir."

* * *

Shadow continued to dash through the fortress, drawing ever closer to the doctor's battleship. It seemed that both Dr. Eggman and Team Rocket were attacking the fortress, though not in synchronization. They kept getting in each other's way.

"Pathetic," he spat. "They can't even overcome petty differences to make a real effort to stop him." He looked back briefly, thinking of the Distortion Master. "He's got their number. I'm not sure anything can stop him." He turned forward again. "But who knows the truth? The doctor has got to know something, and the Master seems to know who I am. Hm...it's so confusing. I shouldn't distract myself, though. The Chaos Emeralds won't lie to me, and I've got two of them."

He pulled them out. They were glowing. He smirked. "And it looks like pretty soon I'll have three." With that, he stashed them away and continued to move towards the battleship.

* * *

"MAGOLON!"

A large soldier, much larger than the soldiers anyone had hitherto dealt with, stomped forward. "Yes, Master?" it replied, its deep voice fully mechanical.

"There's been a serious development. We have another foe."

"Team Rocket?"

"No."

"The doctor?"

"No. This one is far worse than either of them." The Distortion Master held up a hologram map and pointed at an area near the battleship. "He's landed here. I don't know why he's here, but you must find him and destroy him."

"Who is he, that I may destroy him?"

A small jolt of electricity shot out of the Distortion Master's horns and into Magolon's brain. "Data transfer: complete," the super soldier nodded.

"Good. Now, get moving!" the Master snapped. Magolon did so and flew away with a jet-pack while the Master looked towards the other end of his fortress.

"You cannot escape my wrath, you little scumbag," he growled. "This time, you're _mine_."

* * *

"How much longer do you think it'll take?" May asked.

"About fifteen more minutes," Ash replied. He was slowly stitching the torn membrane of Charizard's wing back together, trying his best not to hurt his Pokemon.

"It's quite a sight up here, isn't it?"

"Sure is," Ash smiled, turning towards her. For a moment, he was transfixed by the way she looked as her hair was blown by the strong wind, though somehow her green bandana didn't budge an inch. Shaking it off quickly, he got back to work on Charizard's wound.

"Ho ho! Fancy running into you two, here!"

"Huh?" they started. A small monitor was floating beside them. "Dr. Eggman?"

"What do you want?" Ash asked, slightly defensive.

"Relax, Ketchum. I'm not here to cause any trouble...well, not for you, anyways."

"What do you mean?" May asked, raising an eyebrow.

"According to my analysis of this structure, this flying fortress is being held up by the power of five jewels. I'm trying to find them and destroy them."

"What? Why?"

"Because this massive fortress is being controlled by those black aliens!" Ash and May gasped. "That's what I thought you'd say. I don't suppose you would lend me a hand, so I'll go at this on my own." The monitor started floating away.

"Hold on!" Ash called. "If this is part of those monsters' schemes, then I want a part in stopping it!"

"Me, too!" May nodded.

"That's what I thought you'd say," Eggman chuckled. "Any time you're ready, I'll help you find them."

Ash hastily stitched Charizard back up in half the time he said he would take. This was painful for the Pokemon, but he endured it, knowing that Ash always had a good reason for anything he did.

Well, okay..._almost_ always.

"Hurry up, will ya?" Eggman shouted impatiently. "If my battleship goes down, I won't be able to assist you!"

"Lead the way," Ash told him. Eggman nodded, and they started off.

* * *

Shadow leapt up onto a pedestal and looked around sharply. The Chaos Emerald was in reach, but where was it? He looked at the battleship. The emeralds he had glowed, as though in approval.

"It's on the doctor's battleship, is it?" he smirked. "Heheh...looks like I'm going to have to pay him a little visit." With that, he blasted forward, determination and anger surging through his veins.

* * *

"Where is it?" May wondered aloud.

"Odd," Eggman muttered. "It should be in your vicinity, according to my radar."

"There!" Ash pointed to a large, glowing green sphere that gave off a glow. They dashed towards it.

"How do we destroy it?" May asked.

"Just improvise," Eggman told them. "I really don't know how these things work."

"Too bad we left our Pokemon down there," May sighed. "They would be a big –"

She was violently interrupted by a blast of flames engulfing her torso. When the smoke from the fire cleared, she stood there in shock.

Ash busted out laughing. "It's all right, May! That's just his way of saying 'I love you!'"

"Hardy har har," May laughed dryly. "Now let's stop jesting and try to find a way to destroy this jewel."

It was Eggman's turn to laugh: a genuine laugh as opposed to an evil one, a rarity from the doctor. "And here I thought that _he_ was dense. Look up, princess!"

"Huh?" They turned and saw the jewel had been fried to a crisp. The fortress lurched, causing them to grab onto each other subconsciously to steady themselves.

"One down, four to go!" the doctor cheered. "Follow me!"

Ash snickered joyously. "Charizard, you're a genius."

"Just try not to incinerate me again, please," May grumbled.

* * *

Shadow was getting closer and closer to the doctor's battleship, but now he was running into real trouble. A number of the Distortion Master's soldiers who didn't know Shadow were blocking his path, and so he was forced to destroy them.

"He's not gonna like that," he grumbled. "But I don't care. I have a goal, and I'll do what I must to get there."

* * *

After much effort, Ash and May had successfully aided in destroying three out of five jewels. The flying fortress was starting to lose altitude, but it was still strong. The Distortion Master was growing impatient.

"There's the fourth one!" Ash spotted it and rushed towards it.

"Okay, Charizard: you know what to do!" May smiled.

"Exterminate!" Eggman cheered.

Charizard never got the chance to blow the jewel to pieces. A sudden explosion knocked Pokemon and trainers alike in three different directions.

"Guh!" Eggman exclaimed in shock. "What was that?!"

Ash stood up and rushed over to May and Charizard, helping them up. They turned to face their foe: another one of the mysterious soldiers, only much larger than the usual.

"Uh-oh," Ash muttered. "This is about to get ugly."

"Without our other Pokemon, how can we fight this thing?" May stuttered.

"Charizard's our only shot, but we need his power to destroy the jewels."

"We can't fight it with our bare hands."

"Then our only option is to blow the jewel to pieces and book it, but we've got to distract him."

"Leave that to me," Eggman volunteered. "But you've got to hurry! I can't distract him forever."

"All right, Charizard. Do it."

Eggman's monitor flew in front of the super soldier's face and taunted him. He swiped at it, but missed. Eggman was behind him now, and he turned around and swiped again, but to no avail. Irritated, he crossed his arms and sliced them outwards, narrowly missing Eggman.

"Done!" Ash called. "Let's go get the last one!"

Eggman flew out of his predicament as fast as he could, and they dashed out. The soldier stared after them in anger.

"I'll get you yet, boy," Magolon growled. "You can't run forever."

It didn't take long for them to find the last jewel, which was actually right under Eggman's ship. "All right," Eggman nodded to them. "Thanks again for your help. Now, I have other matters I need to attend to at present. Don't hold back against those devils, and remind them that even if demons exist, there's always an angel to combat them." With that, the monitor flew up to the ship.

"That wasn't a very catchy phrase," May scratched the back of her head.

"No, it wasn't," Ash shrugged. "Come on. Let's –"

Another explosion interrupted the Pokemon trainer, and he was blasted away, nearly falling off the fortress. Thankfully, he grabbed onto the edge in time and got back up, furious.

"What the hell was that?!" he shouted angrily, though he could see it with his own eyes: the super soldier was back.

"You can't escape me, boy," he sneered, pointing at Ash. "What Magolon wants, Magolon gets."

"Then come and get me!" Ash shouted, dashing towards him. Magolon extended his arms, ready to snatch him, but the Pokemon trainer thought quickly and slid between his legs, throwing the super soldier off and nearly knocking him off balance. The soldier spun around quickly and stomped towards Ash angrily in an attempt to dash. Ash let him come and, at the last second, jumped to the side. Magolon fell on his face.

"You little brat," he growled, getting to his feet. "It's no wonder the Master wants you!"

"Ash!"

Ash turned and saw his friend rushing towards him, a scared look on her face. "Let's just kill the jewel and go. He can't stop us."

He turned towards Charizard and nodded. The dragon-like Pokemon sent another jet of flames at the jewel, incinerating it. The fortress was now descending at a steady rate.

"Done. Now let's go," May snatched his hand and made a break for Charizard, but Ash tripped over his feet.

"Ungh!" he grunted.

"Ash!"

Magalon, who had been slowly advancing towards them as they destroyed the jewel, was almost on top of him! He reached out his hand to swallow him. Ash had no time to dodge.

He didn't have to. Summoning all her courage, May charged in front of Ash in a desperate effort to protect him. In the end, she wound up getting snatched by the massive hand of Magalon instead. Ash looked up in horror.

"NO!" he cried. "MAY!"

"It's okay, Ash!" she screamed back, clearly terrified. "Just get out of here!"

"No! I'm not leaving you!"

Charizard didn't give him a choice. Snatching his trainer in his arms, he took off, escaping the wrath of Magalon.

The super soldier looked at the terrified face in his hands, disappointed. "The Master wanted the boy," he grumbled. "Oh, well. I'm sure he'll make very good use of you, though." There was a menacing tone in his voice, as though his words implied something. May was helpless, as his grip was far too strong to escape.


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay, this chapter was easier to write than the last one. Granted, it's shorter, but I think you'll enjoy it. Feel free to R&R, and no flames, please!**

* * *

Chapter 6: The Growing Darkness

"Dammit, Charizard!" Ash cursed when they reached the ground. "Why'd ya have to take me away like that?! We could have saved her!" Charizard shook his head. Ash gritted his teeth. "One well-placed Flamethrower would've incinerated that monster! What could've been so hard about that?!" Charizard just growled a low note, irritated that Ash had forgotten that he had exerted his energy to destroy the jewels and save him from Magolon. Ash groaned dreadfully and turned away. "Well, I guess I don't need you anymore," he spat. "You can go back home to the valley." Charizard rumbled softly, hurt by Ash's words. "Go on. Get outta here." Charizard rumbled again. Ash flared and whirled around. "What are you, deaf?! Charizard! Get the hell outta here!"

Seeing he was unreasonable, Charizard shook his head and took the sky, flapping his wings slowly while Ash just stared after him, grinding his teeth. "You stupid little –"

"Ash!?"

He whirled around angrily and saw Max standing in front of him. "What do you want?"

"Why were you talking to Charizard like that? And where's May?"

"I sent her to Sinnoh," Ash lied, turning away again. "She should be safe over there in Sunyshore. I also contacted your parents yesterday. They should be here soon. Get your stuff together." That was the truth.

"What about May's stuff? She left her Pokemon here with me in case something happened."

"Fine, whatever. Take it with you."

"Won't my parents be looking for my sister?"

"No. I told them she was in Sinnoh."

"Okay, so what was up with you and Charizard?"

"THAT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS, OKAY?!" Ash flung around and screamed, his temper out of control. Max was shocked by his sudden outburst: so shocked he started backing away, tears forming at the brim of his eyes. Ash saw this and instantly calmed down. "Max, I'm sorry, I didn't mean –"

Max just ran away to their camp, hands over his face. Ash watched him go, regretting how he had spoken to both him and Charizard. He looked to the sky, where he caught one last glimpse of his Pokemon before it disappeared into the clouds.

"Why was I so angry anyway?" he asked himself, sitting down and resting his arms on his knees. "Because of May? Because she's been captured? It's happened before; it's not like I can't save her again. So why was I so angry?"

He put a hand over his heart. It was beating rapidly. "I'm scared. I've never been so scared for her since I met her. Heck, I've never been so scared for anyone before, except…"

"_Pikapi?_"

He turned and saw his best friend sitting next to him, a confused look in his eye. "Hey, Pikachu. Did you hear everything that happened out here?" Pikachu shook his head. "Good. It wasn't pleasant. I don't know why I felt that way...I've never felt this way about anyone but you before."

"_Pika?_"

"Those black aliens have captured May," he told him. "I'm scared for her...really scared. I wanted to save her, but Charizard took me away to save me instead. I can't shake this feeling of dread in my heart that something...terrible is going to happen to her." He sighed and scooped up Pikachu. "We should go. There's no telling what's about to happen."

* * *

"Well, well, well," Eggman chuckled as the black hedgehog strode into the control room of his battleship. "Long time no see, Shadow the Hedgehog. To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"

"Doctor," Shadow started, "I need your help."

"Oho, really?!" Eggman laughed long and hard at that one. "That's a first!"

"Doctor, seriously," Shadow growled slightly. "I need to know about my past, and I thought you could tell me something."

"Hah!" Eggman smirked. "There's nothing to tell on that one, Shadow. You _have_ no past!"

"WHAT?!" Shadow cried in shock, caught completely off-guard.

"Haha, I'm just kidding," Eggman snickered. "No, you've got a past...or at least the one from whom I was able to create you had a past."

Shadow raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"You think that you are Shadow the Hedgehog, but this is actually not true. Shadow the Hedgehog died to save the world. You are nothing but a Shadow Android."

Shadow's eyes widened. "No...that can't be."

"But it is," Eggman sneered. "I created you as part of an army, but you took on too much of the original Shadow's personality and memories. Consequently, I had to wipe your memory clean and send you away. You're lucky I didn't turn you into scrap metal."

"You're lying!" Shadow shouted, clenching his head. "It's not true! It can't be!"

Eggman just threw on some shades and smirked. "Deal with it."

The black hedgehog glared at him, rage in his eyes. "One way or another, I will find out if what you say is true, but mark my words: if you're telling the truth, then I'll make you regret creating me in the first place." As he spoke, he'd slowly been making his way over to a glass cylinder in the middle of the room. When he finished, he punched it open and snatched what was inside: the third Chaos Emerald.

"What?!" Eggman shrieked. "Why, you little –!"

"For now, though," he sneered, "I'll let the Chaos Emeralds lead me to the truth. You've been a great help to me, Doctor. I hope we can meet again sometime." With that, he teleported out of the battleship which, thanks to Shadow stealing its power source, was now faltering.

"NO!" Eggman screamed, manically pressing every button he could in a desperate effort to save his ship. "Stupid little black piece of annoyingness and power and –!"

* * *

The Distortion Master stood in his main chamber at his unknown headquarters, impatiently tapping his foot. Magalon said he was on his way, but that didn't stem the impatience in the dark leader. The target he had pursued was dangerous to be sure, and the Master thought it was almost too good to be true that even his best soldier had captured him with ease.

The doors leading into his room swung open, and in came some soldiers marching in two lines, followed on the end by Magalon himself. The others filed out, leaving him alone with their Master.

"Well, then," the Distortion Master folded his arms. "Let me see our prisoner." Magolon obliged, opening his crushed fist and letting a body slump to the floor. The Master jolted. "What's this?"

The body on the floor, instead of being a boy with raven hair and a red cap, was a brunette girl with a green bandana on her head. She wore an orange sleeveless dress and black biker shorts, a green fanny pack around her waist.

"I beg your pardon, Master," Magolon replied. "Your target was on the ground, helpless to escape me, and she got in the way so that I took her away instead. Before I had a chance to snatch the boy, he escaped with his Pokemon. So I kept the girl."

The Master nodded. "You have done well. Who knows? Perhaps we can make use of this girl." He chuckled. "She is certainly a beauty; I wouldn't mind letting myself go on her. But we can save that. Right now, take her away to the dungeon."

Magolon nodded and strode out, dragging the girl behind him. The doors closed behind him, leaving the dark master alone for a moment. When that moment ended, a bright flash of light appeared in the middle of the room. A familiar figure dropped out of it and landed on its feet.

"Ah, there you are, Shadow," the Distortion Master smirked. "I was wondering what became of you. Did you have success?"

"I think so," Shadow replied uncertainly, the doctor's words still ringing in his head. "At the very least, I'm one step closer to my goal. What's next on the menu?"

The dark master chuckled. "Just be patient, Shadow. We'll make our next move soon enough."

* * *

Giovanni stared out grimly at the slowly reddening sky. High in the sky, thanks to the unnatural sky color, the Millennium Comet was visible even though the day was nowhere near over.

"They are getting stronger," he muttered. "If we remain divided, we will fall. I must contact as many potential allies as I can, or it will be too late."

His phone started beeping loudly. He rushed to get it. "What is it?"

"Boss, we have an emergency." It was Domino, one of his top Rocket agents. If she had an emergency, it usually meant someone had severely tampered with one of their operations. This time, however, all Team Rocket operations were on hold, which meant this had to do with the aliens.

"Just give it to me straight, 009. What's happening?"

He heard her take a deep breath before she continued: "The black aliens are getting ready to invade Saffron City."

Giovanni's eyes widened in horror. Of all the things he had expected, he wasn't expecting this. "N-No! That can't be!" He shot up from his desk, a clear look of fright on his face.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Where is our Hope Now?

The dark army of the Distortion Master stood on the outskirts of Saffron City, ready to invade it. At the front of their ranks, Shadow stood as well, willing to help them in the hopes of finding a Chaos Emerald. Magolon stood in back, holding their prisoner by the chains on her wrists. She had ceased struggling a while ago, as it was completely futile.

"Shadow," the dark master started, "allow me to share with you a piece of your past: a past that contains nothing but hatred and contempt for the humans."

"Hatred and contempt?" Shadow repeated, soaking it in. Given how this was in line with his emotions, it seemed to make sense.

"Yes," the master nodded. "The humans are greedy, selfish creatures who desire nothing but self-gratification. They lie, steal, and kill to obtain their desires, and through this selfishness they took everything away from you." He chuckled softly. "I think it's only fair that you repay them by taking it back." With that, he turned away and strode off, arrogance lining his posture. "Activate the bombs," he ordered. "Destroy this city. Kill everyone you see, except for our prisoner." He chuckled malevolently. "I want her to be ripe with despair when I'm done here."

* * *

From the top of the city's highest building, the Silph Co. HQ, two figures watched as the black aliens marched into Saffron City. One of them was a two-tailed fox, the other a red echidna with a white crescent on his chest.

"did you set those bombs up, Tails?" the echidna asked.

"Yes," Tails replied. "We need to activate them if we want to stop them."

"Can they be stopped?"

"If not, then at least they can be slowed down long enough to evacuate everyone from the city." The echidna growled. "Knuckles, don't worry. We're not going to give up the fight. We will find a way to defeat them."

"How do you know?"

Tails took a deep breath. "Because they're everyone's enemy, not just mine or yours. This fight is everyone's fight. Anyone who fails to realize this dooms the world to destruction."

Knuckles nodded. "You're right." He looked down. "Okay. I'm going in." With that, he leapt down into the fray.

* * *

Shadow blazed through the city, killing any opposition he found in the form of Team Rocket agents. He didn't know why he held these humans in particular with so much contempt, but right now he didn't care. He had a goal, and they were in the way. Nothing stood in his way without suffering a consequence.

"I'll fill hell to the brim with you scum," he growled.

* * *

Giovanni watched from his hidden headquarters as the aliens invaded Saffron City, where he had set up his secret base. With their invasion, his fate was sealed. Whatever happened now, whether the people could repel them or not, he couldn't risk staying here. They would assuredly kill him if they found him. With his death, Team Rocket would fall into disarray. While this would shut down the world's most powerful organized crime syndicate, it would also eliminate one of the strongest opposing forces to these aliens. That was something the world could not afford right now.

"Boss!"

He didn't respond, as he just stared out at the destruction lining the streets with a grim sigh.

"Boss, we have to go now!"

He closed his eyes somberly. "So this is how it ends: in despair and hopelessness. Do we have nothing now but our desperation?"

"Boss, if we don't get moving, those monsters will destroy us all!"

He turned around and walked slowly towards his desk, eyeing the picture he had looked at only a few days earlier. The boy was still as excited as ever, and his red cap hadn't budged an inch. Pikachu still mirrored his excitement.

"No," he mused, smiling slightly. "There is still hope. If a hero like you can stay strong through this, then I'm certain we'll find a way."

"Boss, please!"

He finally acknowledged the presence of his three incompetent agents with a sigh. "Take me to the Jepson 04." With that, he strode out slowly. The lavender-haired agent glanced at the picture he was staring at, and his eyes widened.

"Hey, isn't that the twerp?" he wondered.

"Say," Meowth nodded, "you're right, James. But why would the boss have a picture of the twerp in his office? Jessie, look at this!"

"I'm looking," Jessie assured him. "He's always trying to be a hero."

"I reckon he's trying to be one now," James nodded.

"I doubt he's having any success this time," Meowth sighed. "This is more than anyone has ever dealt with."

"Come on," Jessie told them. "The boss is waiting."

They walked out of the now-abandoned office and shut the door behind them, sealing off any and all access to the room by any form of life. The only life that lit the room up now was the little picture of a raven-haired boy in a red hat with his Pikachu.

* * *

The Distortion Master's eyes widened in anger. "_No!_" he snarled. "He can't get away. Magolon! MAGOLON!"

The dark master's best soldier strode forward, prisoner in tow. "What is it, my master?"

"The boss of Team Rocket is trying to escape our wrath," he growled. "That cannot be allowed to happen. Take half of our force into his headquarters and kill him."

"Will half of our force be enough to stop him?"

"If it's not, I'll send Shadow in as soon as I can."

"Very well, Master," Magolon turned and uttered a strange sound that was like a horn, only much more ominous. Instantly, half of the soldiers in the city flew towards the west end of the city, where Team Rocket's hidden headquarters was located.

* * *

"Is the Jepson 04 ready for flight?" James asked.

"No," Giovanni shook his head. "But we don't have time to worry about that. It shouldn't implode on us, but we need to keep it protected while it gets up to speed."

"How long will that take?" Jessie asked.

"Thirty minutes."

"Thirty minutes?!" the threesome repeated in dismay. "We'll never get away in time!"

"It's our only chance!" Giovanni told them. "If we're going to go down, we may as well go down trying!"

The trio sighed and shook their heads. This was going to be a long ride.

"Hey, what are these red dots on this green screen?" Meowth asked, pointing.

"What's with the yellow dot?" James wondered.

Giovanni's eyes widened. "That's the radar!"

"Oh," they smirked, but then their faces fell when they realized what that meant. "Oh, no!"

* * *

Magolon and his army stormed into the secret base and began to spread out in search of the boss. "Don't play games here," he ordered them. "The boss is a prime target. Kill him on sight."

* * *

"You three!" Giovanni barked. "Don't just stand there and act like the world is coming to an end! Get out there and do something!"

"Huh?" they turned around and looked at him, then lit up. "Hey, that's a great idea!" Meowth nodded.

"Why didn't I think of that?" Jessie chuckled.

* * *

The aliens blazed through the Rocket Base, destroying anything and everything in sight, but there was no sign of the boss. "Sir!" one contacted Magolon. "We've found nothing so far!"

"Keep looking!" Magolon replied. "He's got to be in here somewhere."

"Don't think it'll be so easy!"

"Hm?" he looked up and saw some Team Rocket agents standing in front of him. "What do you fools want?"

"We'll spare you the motto since the world's falling apart, but we won't spare you the trouble!" Jessie whipped out a Pokeball.

"For me, that goes double!" James added, whipping out his own Pokeball.

"Your life's about to become something I'd say if this wasn't a children's story!" Meowth interjected.

"Er, Meowth," James looked at him with a raised eyebrow, "the rest of Team Rocket has been cussing like drunken sailors."

"Wait, what?" Meowth raised an eyebrow. "Whatever happened to the G rating?"

"Oh, cut it out!" Jessie snapped. "We've got to focus!"

"Right!" they nodded, chucking their balls and letting out Seviper and Cacnea.

"Seviper! Use Body Slam on that monster!" Jessie commanded.

"Cacnea! Use Pin Missile!" James followed suit.

Their Pokemon obeyed, their attacks slamming into Magolon and actually fazing him. Seviper knocked him back forcefully, and Cacnea dented his armor.

"Blasted fools!" Magolon snapped. "I'll rip you to pieces!"

"Not if we rip you first!" James taunted. "Cacnea! Needle Arm!"

Cacnea's green arm glowed white and slammed into Magolon's chest, a visible dent marring his armor. A tiny hole was invisible.

"Now, Seviper!" Jessie called. "Use Poison Tail!"

Seviper obeyed, and slammed his chest once again, knocking him back. Meowth finished the job, leaping up and ripping the front of his armor open so that his mechanical innards were exposed. Magolon was so shocked that he lost his balance and fell onto his back, dropping a key as he did so.

On seeing this, his prisoner lit up. "Now's my chance!" he smiled, snatching the key and setting herself free. "Now to get out of here."

* * *

The Master of Distortion arrived at Team Rocket's base in the hopes of destroying Giovanni, but the sight that met him instead was dismal. Magolon, his top soldier, lay defeated, his innards exposed. While still alive, his defenses were severely weakened and would require repairs.

"Who did this?!" the Master roared in fury. He saw two Rocket agents and their Pokemon standing in front of him, cowering in fear. "_You_," he snarled, raising a clawed hand. "YOU WILL PAY!" A blast of pure energy shot out of his hand and slammed into them, followed shortly by an explosion and a familiar cry of defeat:

"LOOKS LIKE TEAM ROCKET'S BLASTING OFF AGAIN!"

_Ding._

The dark master looked at a pair of cuffs on the ground, broken and no longer usable. He kicked them away into a pit, smirking slightly.

"It seems our prisoner has escaped," he mused. "I suppose that's not the worst thing in the world, but I must bring her a parting gift."

* * *

May had no idea where she was. Because of this, she quickly became lost and found herself heading deeper and deeper into the base. Soon, she came into a room that was completely abandoned, yet a glowing object in the center of it caught her attention.

"Is that –?" she wondered aloud, coming closer. "It is! A Chaos Emerald! I should probably get this to Ash. He'll know what to do with it." She removed the cylindrical glass that surrounded it and took it out, holding it in her hands a moment to admire its beauty. "Wonderful, isn't it?"

A sudden slam to the side of her face knocked her out of her daydream and a familiar, menacing figure stood over her. "Going somewhere with my emerald?" the Distortion Master growled.

"Yeah, I was!" May snapped back. "I don't know what you're planning on doing with that thing, but I know it can't be good. You can't have it!" She reached for it, but he held it above his head so she couldn't reach it.

"Don't think it'll be that easy," he sneered. "The Chaos Emeralds belong to me, and anyone who says otherwise is –" Suddenly, the emerald disappeared from his hand. He brought it down in shock. "What's this?!"

"Sorry, Distortion Master, but I think I'm going to have to hold onto this for a while."

May and the dark master turned and saw a black hedgehog standing in front of them, holding the emerald in his hand.

"Shadow?!" they both shouted at the same time.

"Why, you little traitor!" the master roared. "You think because you're so powerful you can honestly defy me?!"

"Nobody tells me what to do," he snapped back. "I have my own goals I'm trying to accomplish, and nobody's going to stand in my way, not even you."

The master moved faster than Shadow anticipated and seized him by the throat, his massive claws consuming all but his head. He raised him high, a growl coming from his throat. Shadow was struggling to breathe.

"I am the Master of Distortion!" he roared. "I am the ruler of the Black Arms, and very soon I shall rule this world! I will tell you what to do, and you will do it! Let this be a lesson to you, Shadow the Hedgehog, that those who defy the Master of Distortion will suffer the consequences!"

With that, he dropped Shadow's limp body to the ground and lowered his arm. May was appalled, tears on the brim of her eyes. The master chuckled malevolently and turned to her. "As for you, my pretty…" he sneered.

She took a step back, and sudden tentacles seized her arms and bound her to the wall behind her. She shrieked, terror taking on every fiber of her being, while the master continued to laugh louder and louder as he made his move.


	8. Chapter 8

**Oh, boy. I had a hard time writing this chapter. Most of this required some grit to get done, so I hope it works for you.**

**Also, shout-out to KyKy123 and michaelburnette773 for their wonderful reviews. As for the confusion about our diabolical villain the Distortion Master, he's supposed to replace Black Doom as the antagonist of this story. I figured that would be clear, but I guess not. Sorry about that.**

**Okay, that's all. ****Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 8: The Fourth Watch

The Jepson 04 had surprisingly little trouble escaping the wrath of the Black Arms and managed to blow out of the Rocket hideout. With the Black Arms behind him, Giovanni made as much haste as possible to escape before they could pick up his trail. Before long, he was soaring through the increasingly red sky peacefully, hoping against hope to find some form of refuge.

Knowing he had no other choice, he attempted to contact someone whose actions had never pleased him. As he did so, he could faintly hear an ear-piercing scream behind him.

* * *

"Did the Boss escape?" Jessie moaned, slowly getting to her feet. She was aching all over from blasting off.

"I don't know," James sighed. "The last thing I remember was a fuse in my head blowing."

"Don't even ask me what I've been through," Meowth interjected.

As they stood there, an ear-piercing scream washed over them from a distance. They looked up, puzzled.

"What's that?" James wondered.

"That…" Meowth breathed, "that's the sound of...suffering...horrible, nameless, incomprehensible suffering." Their faces fell in dismay, hardly believing everything that was happening.

* * *

"Did you guys succeed?" Sonic asked Tails and Knuckles. They had regrouped after their mission in Saffron.

"I think so," Tails nodded. "Knuckles used all the mini-bombs I set up to knock out their transmission. Saffron should be okay."

"What about the people?" Knuckles wondered aloud.

"We evacuated them to the nearest safe haven," Sonic assured him. "They should be okay."

It was at that moment that an ear-piercing scream echoed in their ears, loud enough to make an impact without destroying their ears.

* * *

Eggman was floating around in his small, one-man pod, grumbling dreadfully at Shadow's insolence. He'd make sure his former ally would pay for what he did. As he grumbled to himself about this, he noticed a call coming in. Having nothing better to do, he answered it.

"Dr. Eggman?" came a familiarly detestable voice.

Eggman's eyes widened. "Giovanni! What do you want?!"

"I need a haven," the leader of Team Rocket replied. "My hideout in Saffron has fallen, and I need to stay hidden from those monsters. They intend to kill me."

"Why should I help you?"

Giovanni groaned. "Doctor, now is no time to brood over past injuries. We need to stand united if we hope to defeat this threat."

Eggman growled low, then nodded. "Fine. Meet me on Mt. Ember." As he said this, he noticed a screeching noise coming from his radio. "Er, is something wrong with my radio?"

"That's probably that scream that's coming from my side," Giovanni told him. "I'll be there shortly."

* * *

The Distortion Master laughed more wickedly than ever as he saw May's limp form slump to the ground face-down. She was still conscious, as could be seen by her heaving shoulders and convulsing body. One could also hear quiet sobbing.

"You will live...for now," he drooled. "But you will never be free. As long as I live in this world, that scar will mark you." He turned and strode out out, turning to a soldier. "Blow this place to smithereens," he callously ordered. "Let no evidence remain that it ever existed." The soldier ran off to execute his order, and he himself faded away, leaving the limp forms of May and Shadow in the room with the Chaos Emerald.

After two minutes of incessant sobbing, May finally looked up, her eyes almost disfigured by how much she had cried. Shadow still lay on the ground, unconscious. She sighed, stood up, and started putting her clothes which the master had torn off back on.

When she was dressed again, she walked forward a step, her face perpetually sad as she could see no hope. A sudden clattering from behind her caught her attention, and she looked to see that her green fanny pack had fallen to the ground and spilled its contents. Rolling her eyes, she started to pick everything up and put it away: her phone, her encyclopedia, and her chocolate snack to name a few. She reached down to grab the last thing, then stopped as her hand hovered over it. It was a half of a ribbon, pink in color with white on the edges. A dirty half of a medal that resembled the sun adorned it.

A tear formed in her eye as she picked it up and held it to her heart, and soon the sobs started again as she clutched it as though desperately holding onto something she never wanted to let go. A low rumble shook her out of her funk, and she quickly decided to escape. Without a second thought, he dashed out, grabbing Shadow in her arms as she did so, and ran as fast as she could.

After five minutes, she managed to find the exit and burst out. Mere seconds after she did, a massive laser from above slammed down into the hideout and decimated it, transforming it and practically everything inside it into dust. May didn't look back. All she was worried about was escaping the destruction in there and the pain that had seared her heart seemingly forever.

Only one article survived the laser's devastation: a small picture, with broken glass marring the image, of an excited boy in a red cap with his Pikachu.

* * *

"So you're here, are you?" Eggman growled as Giovanni stepped out of the Jepson 04. "I'm pleased to see you made it in one piece."

"Don't be so ill at ease with me, Doctor," Team Rocket's leader replied. "We can't afford that, not right now."

"Why do you wish to start an alliance now, after all the trouble I've caused you?"

"We have no choice," Giovanni snapped. "Any conflict that exists between us must be put aside for now. The world has one common enemy, and unless we realize this, we will never defeat them."

Eggman nodded. "So what's your plan?"

Before Giovanni could speak, a sudden buzzing in his pocket shook him. He pulled it out. "What is it, 009?! Make it quick!"

"Boss, we've got more trouble," came Domino's voice. "The black aliens have managed to shut down every major city around the world. Rumors have also spread amongst Team Rocket agents of a surprising ally of theirs, and I'm afraid it has been confirmed."

"Who is it?!" Giovanni barked.

There was a pause before she spoke again: "a black hedgehog."

The two villains gasped in shock. "Shadow?!" Giovanni exclaimed in shock. "I-I don't believe it."

"So _that's_ why he gave me so much trouble, eh?!" Eggman growled.

"009, I'm ordering our final emergency protocol. Pull out everything we've got, including Diablon!"

"But Boss, it hasn't been tested yet! It's not ready for combat!"

"We have no choice!" he barked back. "The world's fate is in our hands! Any questions?"

There was another pause. "No, sir."

"Good. And one more thing: until such time as the world informs us that we'll be okay, Team Rocket is forming an alliance with Dr. Eggman. Get the word out, and don't let me hear of infighting. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," came Domino's reply.

"Good," he nodded and hung up, looking at Eggman grimly. "I never thought Shadow would join with an enemy like this," he muttered. "Why would he? What could they have to offer him? I know he's not exactly a hero, but...why?"

"One way or another," Eggman growled, "I'm going to make him pay for everything."

With that, they set to work to concoct a plan.

* * *

May managed to find her way to a secluded place in a dense forest where nobody would find them. Sighing with relief, she gently laid Shadow down and prepared a small camp: a small fire with a small pot over it, soup in the pot.

After a while, Shadow's eyes fluttered open, and he groaned as he sat up, groaning. May turned to him and smiled weakly. "You're up," she noted.

"Huh?" he whispered, still slightly dazed. "Where am I?"

"I honestly don't know, myself," May replied uncertainly. "I just ran to a place where I could get away from those monsters and rest a while. I figured you'd come with me if you were awake."

Shadow stood up and held his head. "Oof," he muttered. "That hurts."

"I guess getting dropped to the ground hurt, huh?" May sighed sadly. "At least it'll heal." She held her stomach, her hand trembling as she rubbed it. "Unlike some pain."

Shadow looked at her, puzzled. "What do you mean?"

She looked at him somberly, and raised her skirt up, revealing her abdomen. A horrifying image had been burned into it, practically destroying it.

Shadow gasped. "Wha...who...did he do that to you?!"

"Yes," she nodded, lowering her shirt. "He took just about everything away from me: my dignity, my vanity, my hope, my…" She couldn't go on, as she choked on her emotions and held her face in her hands, weeping.

Shadow looked at her, a sudden sadness filling his heart. This girl who had saved him was young, probably a teenager. Her brown hair seemed to float by her sides, and her slender form heaved with every tear she shed. Unsure of what he was doing, he stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. She looked up at him, her tears subsiding from her sapphire eyes for a moment.

"W-Who are you?" he asked, his voice trembling.

She wiped her eyes and smiled, a bit stronger this time but still not as convincingly. "My name's May," she replied.

_May._ That name rang a bell in his mind, though it wasn't the name that haunted his nightmares. He lowered his hand and turned away. "Why did you save me?" he asked.

"Well, you did save me once before," she replied. "That's a good reason, right?"

"Why else?" he nodded.

She chuckled softly. "Do you always need a reason to help someone?"

Shadow held his heart, surprised at her selflessness. The Distortion Master's words echoed through his head again: _The humans are greedy, selfish creatures who desire nothing but self-gratification. They lie, steal, and kill to obtain their desires, and through this selfishness they took everything away from you._ He looked at her out of the corner of his eye in admiration. Was the Distortion Master wrong? Were humans as horrible as he had said? Shadow had never taken a liking to them, but was that justified? All of a sudden, he wasn't so sure.

"Here."

His thoughts shook away when he saw her hold something to him. "Huh?"

"It's soup," she replied. "You should eat and regain your strength."

Without a second thought, he took the bowl from her and sipped from it, swallowing the hot stuff down. His eyes widened. "That's good," he savored it. "Real good."

"You really think so?" she asked, hiding the surprise in her voice. Was there hope for her cooking skills after all?

"Yeah," he nodded, continuing to sip. "I haven't tasted something so delicious since...hm...hell, I don't even remember." He still had three emeralds to find.

She giggled slightly and tucked herself into a sleeping bag. "You should rest a while," she advised him. "I know I'm going to."

He sat down and sipped at his soup until it was gone and in his stomach. He placed his hand over his abdomen and rubbed it, his mind a blur. After a moment, he heard some light snoring not far in front of him. He looked up and saw that May had fallen asleep. She didn't look like she was having a peaceful rest, as her face was tense, and she shivered. Without a second thought, he walked over to her and put a hand on her shoulder. She calmed down.

Placing the bowl in the empty pot he started to walk out, but he turned back one more time. "You've done more for me than I could ever have hoped to do for myself," he whispered. "How someone like you could give that to someone like me, I don't know, but I won't forget your kindness." He sighed somberly. "Please don't hold me in contempt for what I'm about to do. I still have to find the last three Chaos Emeralds...and the truth about who I am. When I have done this, I hope we can meet again." With that, he turned away and started walking away. "Goodbye, May." And he disappeared.

* * *

**Interesting fact: In another story I wrote that involved May and Shadow, I had May do exactly what she did here with the soup without knowing she wasn't a good cook. When I did find out, I decided to leave that as it was, as it added to the scene's overall effect. That's what I was going for here, too. Feel free to let me know what you think: rate and review!  
**


	9. Chapter 9

**All right, and we are back with another chapter! I feel kinda lucky: I expected this to be a little harder to write, but I actually had an easier time with it. Anyways, I hope you enjoy; feel free to rate and review!**

* * *

Chapter 9: Larger than Outer Space

When May awoke the next morning, she looked around and was somewhat disappointed to find herself alone. _Shadow must have left when I fell asleep_ she sighed. "Oh, well. He probably has his own business to attend to." She got up and rummaged through her fanny pack, hoping to find that chocolate snack she'd saved.

What she found instead was the ribbon half she had reclaimed back in Team Rocket's hideout. She held it in the palm of her hand, just staring at it for the longest time, forgetting everything around her as she thought of this ribbon...and the one who held the other half.

_He took just about everything away from me: my dignity, my vanity, my hope…_ she recalled her words to Shadow the night before on what that monster had done to her. His heinous actions had left her in a state of despair, but now she felt one thread of hope still keeping a hold on her heart.

"I was wrong," she muttered to herself, slowly standing up as she spoke. "They can take away my dreams...they can take away my dignity...they can take away the sun in the sky...hell, they can take away the very air that I breathe."

She was standing on her own two feet now, her hand holding the ribbon half tightly over her heart, a new fire burning in her eyes. "But they can never take away my hope...or my faith...or my love." She strapped her fanny pack on, ready to go. "Hang on, Ash. Stay strong, Shadow. I'm coming."

* * *

Shadow looked around curiously. Chaos Control had taken him to what appeared to be a small hangar. Everything was silent, save for the sounds you'd expect to come from a place where jets take off. For the hedgehog's churning mind, it was somewhat relieving.

Then the sound of an engine broke that silence. He turned towards it and saw a plump aircraft land. The landing ramp lowered, and two figures came out: a blue hedgehog and a human with wild raven hair and a red cap containing it. A yellow rodent-like creature sat on his shoulder. They were smiling.

"What's up, Shadow?" the blue hedgehog waved.

Shadow turned away, slightly annoyed. "What do you want?"

"Nice to see you, too," the hedgehog retorted similarly.

He turned back, raising an eyebrow. "What are you doing here?"

"Those black aliens are heading up to the Space Colony ARK," the human explained. His voice sounded like gravel, but it resounded with warmth. "We're gonna follow them and see what they're up to."

"_Pi Pikachu!_" his companion agreed.

Shadow turned away slightly, his eyes pulling out of focus. "The...ARK?" he repeated, more to himself than to them. Other than May's kindness, this had touched his heart more than anything he'd discovered since this whole mess began.

"There's always room for one more," the human smiled warmly. "We could really use your help. What do you say?"

Shadow thought for a moment, then turned and walked towards them with a brief nod. His companions looked at each other, grinned, and followed him back onto the ship. The landing ramp was raised, and the ship took off.

* * *

"What do you think they're doing on the ARK?" Sonic asked, a frown on his face.

"I honestly have no clue," Ash replied, fidgeting with something in his hands. "To be honest, I'm not super worried about that. Team Rocket's got control of it, and they're not going to let those monsters in without a fight."

Sonic shrugged and looked towards a glowing light to their left. "What about that comet?"

Ash followed his gaze and shook his head. "Now that's a puzzle. I don't know why it's come back after only a few years, but I fail to see any conceivable way that they could be involved with its reappearance. The only way to move something so massive would be with Chaos Control. With the Chaos Emeralds here with us, there's no way they could've pulled that."

"Well, they _are_ aliens. Maybe they have their own energy sources."

"They are _not_ aliens," Ash retorted. Sonic looked at him, puzzled. "Their weapons are exact replicas of weapons I've seen used by other villains I once faced. The odds of aliens from outer space having the exact same weapons as a criminal organization on our world are a million to one." He looked back at the comet. "Wherever they came from, whatever they are...they're not from another world."

"So...you're not worried about the comet?" Sonic asked slowly.

"Oh, I'm worried, all right," Ash assured him. "But I'm not super worried; I see no way in which they could be involved with its reappearance."

Sonic raised an eyebrow. "Are you worried at all?"

Ash turned to look him, his face twisting into one that made it clear that something panged him inside. "Yes. Yes, I am."

"What about?"

He looked down a moment at his hands, slowly opening them. When they were open, he looked back at the blue hedgehog, a pained expression on his face. Sonic walked over and looked at his open hands and saw half of a ribbon, pink in color with white on the edges. A neat and polished half of a medal that resembled the sun adorned it.

"Oh," was all Sonic could whisper.

"_Pika,_" Pikachu sighed sadly.

* * *

Shadow looked out the window at the looming Space Colony. Its appearance was slightly terrifying to some, but to him it seemed as though he was returning home for the first time in years.

"Home?" he whispered to himself. "What about this place says home? There's nothing homely about it. It looks completely abandoned, and yet…"

He paused as he felt the four Chaos Emeralds pulsate around him with positive energy. He looked back towards the ARK and raised an eyebrow. "There's an emerald somewhere on there," he smiled slightly, though it didn't last as he looked ticked at the memory of what he went through for the last emerald flew through his head. "It better not be as hard as the last one. I don't mind a challenge, but that was stupid. Knocked out and nearly strangled...all for that damn fourth Chaos Emerald!"

He huffed in irritation as he calmed down, the homely thoughts of the ARK pervading his mind once again. "This feeling...this feeling that I'm home...it makes no sense. This place is so familiar to me...my goodness: I'm remembering all the intricate passages and delicacies and whatnot! How the hell can I not remember anything else and yet know this place inside and out?!" He closed his eyes, confused. "Why? Why is this place so…?"

Then his eyes shot open as a gate in his mind, hitherto closed, suddenly opened again. "This is...where I…"

His eyes closed again as several images flashed through his mind in a matter of seconds: a young, lovely blonde with sky-blue eyes, running around with a black hedgehog. They were playing as though they didn't have a care in the world. Then he saw them running again through the same passage, this time with fear written all over their face while men in black chased them. Then he saw the blonde girl collapsing to the ground, hand on her side, yet she was somehow smiling. The black hedgehog stared at her in horror through a glass wall.

Shadow's eyes opened quickly as he realized what he had seen. "That was...Maria?..." The last image reappeared. "She...died?" His eyes closed again, and he felt water bud on the sides. "Why does it...matter so much to me?" he choked. "I don't...even...remember her!"

Another image flashed through his mind in answer to his question: this time, the black hedgehog, now glowing bright silver, was falling through the atmosphere, watching the Space Colony ARK fade from his view, and then...nothing.

His eyes opened. _Maria...this is what you wanted, wasn't it? Yes...this is the promise I made to you…_

"Those words," he muttered. "They ring in my mind, and...I'm the one who speaks?"

"Hey, Shadow!"

Shadow jolted as the voice of the blue hedgehog snapped him out of his deep thoughts and finally brought him back to reality. "What?"

"Our sensors have detected a Chaos Emerald on the ARK!" Sonic smiled. "We're starting to think that the aliens are after it, so we're going to blaze on through and get it, first!"

Shadow's eyes widened. If the aliens got it, he would have to deal with the Distortion Master again, and he was not up for that.

"What do you say that while we're at it, we have a little fun and race? Winner takes all! You up for this, Shadow?" He didn't wait for an answer and dashed out. Shadow turned towards the ARK, a place he thought of as home, and dashed out after Sonic. This was a race he was not willing to lose.

* * *

**And with that, I'd like to make a small announcement. The day I'm writing this is the last day of vacation I have before I have to go back to school. I'm going to be swamped this semester, so unfortunately that means I won't be able to update this story for a while. :(**

**I expect to be back before the month of May ends. Don't worry: I will finish this story, even if I'm not in the mood for it when that time comes. I might be able to update before May comes around, but don't expect anything until May.**

**Thanks for your support!**


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